An alternative to Government curfews for yobs (Islington Liberal Democrats)

Islington Liberal Democrats <Islington_ld@cix.co.uk>

An alternative to Government curfews for yobs

December 21, 2000 12:00 AM

At a Town Hall meeting on Monday evening, Islington councillors were told by Chief Superintendent, Rob Hope, of the apparent success of the Borough's Acceptable Behaviour Contracts (ABCs). ABCs are a new initiative by Islington's Liberal Democrat Council. They are contracts signed by 10-18 year olds with the Police and the Council's Housing Department to observe set standards of behaviour. Islington's ABCs are being seen as a workable alternative to the Government's Anti Social Behaviour Orders (ASBO) and curfews which are considered by some to be unworkable and others to infringe civil liberties. The Initiative The ABC initiative has been very successful to date. Sixty contracts have been signed and only 2 breached. Teenage anti-social behaviour has been reduced. ABCs work because breeches threaten a family's tenancy rights if they live in Council or housing association accommodation. Experience has shown that as soon as the question of tenancy is raised, parents immediately take the issue of anti-social behaviour seriously, and youths conform through loyalty to their parents. ABCs seem to be working well according to the Met Police and the Council and are now being assessed by the Home Office with initial comments extremely favourable. ABCs are also cheap (costing around a twentieth of an ASBO), can be implemented fast and are flexible. Signing the contract is voluntary but failure to sign can subsequently be cited as refusal to engage in mediation when later applying for an ASBO or during eviction proceedings. Chair of the Council's Partnerships Committee, Cllr Bridget Fox has said about ABCs, "Anti-social behaviour has only been found to improve when youths take responsibility for their own behaviour. ABCs do just that. "There is little point in imposing another set of rules on an individual who clearly has neither interest nor incentive to follow rules. The reason ABCs have been a success is because they are voluntary."